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Awards to be given on March 20 at Prevent Cancer Dialogue for Action™: Right-Sizing Cancer Screening.

Alexandria, VA (PRWEB)March 18, 2014

Five cancer luminaries will be honored for innovation, advocacy and leadership in cancer prevention and early detection at the 2014 Laurels Awards luncheon on March 20 during the 16th annual national Dialogue for Action: Right-Sizing Cancer Screening in Baltimore, Md. The awards luncheon is co-sponsored by the Prevent Cancer Foundation, the National Colorectal Cancer Roundtable (NCCRT) and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG).

As in years past, the 2014 Laurels awards will recognize individuals for cancer prevention and early detection national leadership, innovative programs and advocacy, however, this year two special awards will be given for inspiration and health policy.

The 2014 Laurels award recipients are:

National Leadership – Laurie Fenton Ambrose
Laurie Fenton Ambrose is the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Lung Cancer Alliance (LCA). Hired as LCA's first President in 2004, Fenton-Ambrose has since transformed LCA ten-fold into an award-winning 4-Star Charity delivering high impact achievements for its stakeholders.

Innovative Programs – Olga G. Sánchez
Olga Sánchez has an exceptional history of service and leadership in community cancer prevention and control in the Latino community in San Diego, Calif. As a community health representative with the Por La Vida program, she oversees a team of community health advisors, called consejeras, in their roles as natural helpers and instructors on early detection of breast and cervical cancer, nutrition and cancer control and tobacco control.

Advocacy – Dr. Thomas K. Weber M.D., F.A.C.S.
Dr. Thomas Weber’s dedication to ending colorectal cancer is at the center of his life’s work. He has held numerous positions leading the fight against this deadly disease. A surgeon and medical expert on colorectal cancer, he chaired the National Colorectal Cancer Round Table from 2006 to 2013. He is the founding president of the Colon Cancer Challenge Foundation which has raised awareness of colorectal cancer for over 10 years with the organization’s Annual Challenge Run in New York City’s Central Park and the popular “rollin colon” national educational program.

Health Policy – Susan Dentzer
One of the nation's most respected health policy journalists, Susan Dentzer is a senior policy adviser at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, a position she took after five years as editor-in-chief of Health Affairs, the nation’s leading health policy journal. Dentzer is an elected member of the Institute of Medicine and the Council on Foreign Relations. She also is a fellow of the National Academy of Social Insurance and the Hastings Center and a public trustee of the American Board of Medical Specialties, the not-for‐profit organization which oversees 24 approved medical specialty boards in setting standards for board certification and maintenance of certification for the nation’s physicians.

Inspiration – The Newsbabes
In a unique collaboration, more than 20 female news anchors in the Washington, DC area join together in a collaboration called “NewsBabes”, to bash breast cancer. The NewsBabes use their celebrity and influence to make an impact. Since 2008, the annual NewsBabes Bash for Breast Cancer has raised tens of thousands of dollars to support local programs which provide screenings, regardless of a woman's ability to pay, and help women and men deal with breast-cancer diagnosis, treatment and survivorship.

The Dialogue for Action™ is an annual national conference that convenes a diverse group of stakeholders committed to realizing the lifesaving potential of cancer screening for all communities. Dialogue for Action covers the mandated guidelines-driven cancer screenings seen in quality measures (colorectal, cervical and breast cancer screenings) and issues related to other cancer screenings (such as oral, prostate and lung). For more information about the Dialogue for Action™: Right-Sizing Cancer Screening visit http://dialogueforaction.org.

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About the Prevent Cancer Foundation:
The mission of the Prevent Cancer Foundation is saving lives through cancer prevention and early detection. Founded in 1985, the Foundation has provided more than $134 million in support of cancer prevention and early detection research, education, advocacy and community outreach nationwide. For more information, please visit http://www.preventcancer.org.